While the band was all in town, Hot Rize was inducted into the Colorado Music Hall of Fame at their headlining show at the 50th Annual RockyGrass Festival on July 31st. Hot Rize is part of The Flatirons Sessions induction class of 2021, which the pandemic has delayed making official.
Hot Rize is truly a music legend– the patriarchs of Colorado’s modern progressive bluegrass movement, inspiring so many bands – including fellow Colorado Music Hall of Famers: String Cheese Incident, Leftover Salmon and Yonder Mountain String Band. From their 1979 self-titled debut album through their live 40th Anniversary Bash album, Hot Rize and their western-swing alter-egos, Red Knuckles and The Trailblazers, have championed traditional forms of Americana music for a modern audience.
The Grammy-nominated band has played at almost all of the major festivals, produced eight studio albums, three live albums, did countless tours across four continents, appeared many times on television and radio and was awarded the International Bluegrass Music Association’s very first Entertainers of the Year Award.
Following the induction, banjo player, Pete Wernick expressed his appreciation for being recognized as a Colorado Music Hall of Famer: “It was meaningful to me to be inducted, as Colorado is the main place I’ve lived, and this is quite a high honor for a musician.” But the honor is all ours.
Big congrats to Hot Rize members – Nick Forster, Tim O’Brien, Pete Wernick and Bryan Sutton
Read more about Hot Rize
Photo caption: Patty Calhoun (left), Hall of Fame Board Member and Founder/Editor of Westword, and Karen Radman (right), Executive Director induct Hot Rize at RockyGrass. Photo credit: Benko Photographics
Photo caption: As seen from backstage, the induction of Hot Rize (Nick Forster, Tim O’Brien, Pete Wernick and Bryan Sutton) at RockyGrass. Photo credit: Stephen Ramsey